Meteorologist Ryan Hall says the United States is heading into a week of weather that could get dangerous in a hurry, especially from the Plains into the Midwest.
In his latest forecast, Hall said a “massive” storm sequence is building, with severe weather expected to ramp up over the weekend and then intensify from Sunday through at least Wednesday. His warning was not limited to one storm day or one state. He described a broad, expanding setup that could bring large hail, damaging winds, flash flooding, and significant tornadoes across a huge part of the country.
His basic message was clear: this is not the kind of pattern people should shrug off.
And the part that stands out most is how long the threat may last. Hall is not talking about a quick hit-and-run event. He is talking about a multi-day severe weather stretch that grows from a West Texas problem into a much bigger national concern.
Saturday Starts The Escalation In West Texas
Ryan Hall said the severe weather marathon begins in earnest on Saturday across West Texas.
He pointed to a slight risk centered on places like Lubbock, Amarillo, Midland, and San Angelo, where storms are expected to fire late in the afternoon and into the evening. According to Hall, the main threats there are large hail and damaging winds, with storms likely to build rapidly once a wave of energy slams into the high plains and collides with moisture and daytime heating already in place.
That combination is what makes these spring setups so dangerous. The ingredients do not always look dramatic on the ground at first, but once they come together, storms can intensify quickly.
Hall warned that isolated cells on Saturday could drop hail big enough to dent cars and bring gusts strong enough to snap tree limbs. He also flagged a flash flood concern, saying storms may merge into a more solid line capable of dumping more than an inch of rain in less than an hour.
That is a lot of trouble packed into a small time window.
But Hall was also careful to say Saturday is only the beginning. He described the West Texas setup as the appetizer for a much more serious outbreak expected to expand eastward after that.
Sunday Widens The Target Zone Across Texas And Oklahoma
By Sunday, Ryan Hall said the severe weather threat grows quickly and pulls millions more people into the danger zone.
He said more than 14 million people could be at risk as a 15% severe weather zone runs down the Interstate 35 corridor. That includes Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, Oklahoma City, and Tulsa, all areas Hall specifically highlighted as being in play.
Storms, he said, are likely to begin firing between about 3:00 and 5:00 p.m. and then continue well after sunset.
That evening and nighttime element matters. Severe weather is always disruptive, but once storms are still going after dark, the danger rises because warnings are easier to miss and people are far more vulnerable while sleeping.
Hall said the atmosphere on Sunday will become highly unstable as strong winds aloft pull rich Gulf moisture northward. He described it as a perfect recipe for explosive thunderstorm development.
The threats he laid out were serious: baseball-size hail, straight-line winds capable of knocking out power across entire neighborhoods, and a flash flood setup stretching across urban areas where deep moisture may get wrung out repeatedly.
He also noted that the Weather Prediction Center had already highlighted that same corridor for flooding concerns.
That is what makes Sunday so concerning. It is not just one hazard. It is several of them at once, piling into a region with major population centers and a lot of people who may be tempted to treat it like a normal spring storm day.
Monday Could Turn Into A Destructive Plains Outbreak
If Sunday is the day the system expands, Hall made it sound like Monday could be the day things become much more intense.
He said the risk area nearly doubles in size, putting more than 28 million people under the threat zone. The core corridor, according to Hall, stretches from Dallas through Oklahoma City and into Kansas City and Omaha.
That is a big footprint.
And as he explained, this is one of those moments in forecasting when the data begins to stop wavering and starts locking in. Hall said that what looked like only a possibility before is now appearing much more certain and potentially much more intense.
That is not language forecasters use lightly.
He said winds aloft are expected to surge across the central United States, dragging unusually warm and humid air northward. One of the most remarkable details in his forecast was the idea that enough storm energy and wind shear could reach as far north as Green Bay, Wisconsin, by Monday evening.
For April, that is not the sort of thing you see every year.
Hall said the ingredients appear to be lining up especially well from Oklahoma City to Kansas City, where discrete supercells could develop before later merging into a messier line. If the setup comes together the way current guidance suggests, he said Monday could produce some of the most destructive storms seen so far this year.
That is a serious statement, and it deserves to be taken that way.
Large hail, winds over 70 mph, and an emerging tornado threat are all part of the concern. And while the exact placement may still shift some, Hall made it clear that this is not a maybe-in-theory kind of setup anymore.
Tuesday Looks Like The Peak Of The Entire Sequence
Ryan Hall said Tuesday is shaping up to be the most dangerous day of the whole stretch.
He described it as the peak of the outbreak, with roughly 48 million people potentially under the gun. The threat area he discussed stretches from Dallas all the way to Chicago and Milwaukee, creating an unusually broad severe weather corridor that reaches deep into the Midwest.
That northward extent is one of the reasons the forecast feels so alarming.
Hall specifically mentioned the Chicago area, warning that anyone with outdoor plans Tuesday evening should reconsider them. He said storms are expected to fire during the afternoon and continue well into the night, turning it into what could be a highly dangerous after-dark event for the Midwest.
That is the kind of forecast that should immediately change how people think about the day.
This is not just about getting wet at a ballgame or seeing a few lightning strikes in the distance. Hall said the atmosphere looks favorable for supercells capable of widespread wind damage and tornadoes, including the possibility of strong, long-track tornadoes if the environment comes together as expected.
He pointed to a powerful jet streak punching out of the southern Rockies into a very moist and unstable air mass, giving storms the wind shear they need to rotate.
He also said forecasters are highly confident this broad event is happening, and that the Storm Prediction Center has already suggested a higher risk category could be introduced once the timing gets nailed down more precisely.
That kind of confidence several days out is always worth noticing.
And Hall’s warning about the Chicago and Milwaukee areas is especially striking because seeing this kind of tornado-supportive environment that far north in April is, as he put it, rare and alarming.
Wednesday Pushes The Threat East But Does Not End It
By Wednesday, Hall said a cold front should finally begin shoving the whole mess eastward.
But he made it clear that this will not be a quiet exit. More than 37 million people could still be under severe weather risk as the threat shifts into the Mississippi Valley, targeting areas from Indianapolis down through Memphis and even toward Austin.
In Hall’s forecast, storms may already be ongoing Wednesday morning and then refire later in the day as the front keeps moving.
He described that cold front as a plow scooping up warm, unstable air and forcing it upward, a process that could generate a large organized squall line. Even if the tornado threat drops compared with earlier days, Hall said a widespread line of storms capable of 60 to 70 mph winds would still be enough to blow high-profile trucks off highways and send trees crashing onto homes.
That is the sort of damage many people underestimate.
Not every big severe weather day has to produce a classic tornado outbreak to become dangerous. Sometimes a long, powerful squall line can cause just as much disruption over a broader area, especially during a weekday when people are on the roads or trying to get to work.
Hall said Wednesday morning commutes could easily be interrupted by blaring severe thunderstorm warnings as this system pushes through.
There Is Some Better Weather, But Not For Everyone
After all the severe weather talk, Hall did carve out one brighter part of the forecast.
He said Saturday should bring some of the best weather in the country to parts of the Deep South and the lower Mississippi Valley, where a strong high-pressure system is expected to block out the storminess for a time. According to Hall, that setup should bring wall-to-wall sunshine, lower humidity, and spring temperatures in the 70s.
He also said that dry air should drift westward next week, bringing sunny conditions into Southern California and Arizona.
That is a useful reminder that not the entire country will be dealing with danger at the same time. But it also throws the central U.S. setup into sharper contrast. While some people will get a beautiful spring weekend, others will be entering a stretch where weather awareness needs to stay high for several straight days.
And that is one of the hardest kinds of forecast patterns to deal with. It is not one obvious national emergency. It is a concentrated corridor of recurring danger that keeps reloading.
Ryan Hall’s Core Message: Do Not Be Scared, Be Ready
Near the end of the forecast, Ryan Hall boiled the whole thing down to a phrase he often uses: do not be scared, be prepared.
That fits this setup.
There is no reason for panic, but there is every reason to take the coming days seriously. Hall’s forecast points to a severe weather pattern that starts in West Texas, grows across Texas and Oklahoma, then spreads into the Plains and Midwest with at least the potential for major hail, destructive wind, flash flooding, and significant tornadoes.
The most concerning stretch, based on his outlook, runs from Sunday through Wednesday, with Monday and especially Tuesday standing out as the days to watch most closely.
And because some of the most dangerous storms may continue after dark, the practical advice almost writes itself. This is the time to check alerts, make sure warning methods are working, and think through where to go if a tornado warning is issued.
Ryan Hall’s words captured it well: a massive, wild week of weather is ahead.
The atmosphere is loading up, the threat zone is widening, and for a big chunk of the country, the quiet part of the forecast is almost over.
Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, John developed a love for the great outdoors early on. With years of experience as a wilderness guide, he’s navigated rugged terrains and unpredictable weather patterns. John is also an avid hunter and fisherman who believes in sustainable living. His focus on practical survival skills, from building shelters to purifying water, reflects his passion for preparedness. When he’s not out in the wild, you can find him sharing his knowledge through writing, hoping to inspire others to embrace self-reliance.
